Kevin Abdulrahman Choice

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2009 musCat daIlY 05

NatION

We see the results of some of these individuals’

lives and automatically conclude that they have

had a lucky break. i know that as a young boy

growing up, i would feel rather unlucky. i would

see my parents work their guts off and we only

made it week in week out.

i would see others living a great life and not

knowing any better, i attributed it to luck.

fortunately, as i grew up i started to pay close

attention to these so called lucky individuals.

for every instance where the majority would

perceive a success story as luck, i would realise

the amount of hard work, sweat and tears that

actually went into it behind the scenes. These

individuals often found their

luck at the junction of ‘oppor-

tunity’ and ‘preparation’.

The harder you work doing

the right things, the luckier you

get. you have to ask yourself,

“Based on what i want, am i doing the right

things that will get me so called lucky?”

a wise person once told me that luck was an

interesting word. He said that he saw luck to

stand for labouring under correct knowledge.

my question to you is, are you labouring

under correct knowledge?

There is no question that people are working

hard. in fact today, hard work is the minimum

requirement. However not all hard work is re-

warded equally. you need to ensure that you

are working hard at doing the right things.

you see it’s like saying, you want to put on

weight and you are not taking in enough calo-

ries, or a problem people are more familiar

with, want to lose weight and are still on take-

aways and doughnut diets. you have to do the

right things in line with what you want in your

life.

Here is another example i often mention in

my workshops. imagine you live in an area

close to a major arterial highway intersection.

from this arterial intersection, you have a

choice of highways that can take you north,

south, east or west. now here is what most

people do when they are sim-

ply working hard.

They want to head north,

and yet they choose to go on

the western highway. it doesn’t

matter how long you drive for

and how fast you drive, you simply won’t make

it to your northern destination.

if you want to go north, then you need to

ensure that you are on the northern highway.

Only then will your efforts be handsomely

rewarded.

So next time you start to say that some indi-

viduals seem to have all the luck; i hope that

you will rethink that. i would like to suggest that

in most instances, it is your choices that deter-

mine your luck.

a muScaT daily cOlumniST

Results IN lIfe -ChOICe OR luCk?

Kevin Abdulrahman

kevin abdulrahman is an in-demand leadership development and performance acceleration

speaker and trainer

SucceSSful

individualS are OfTen

deemed aS lucky

You can mail him on [email protected]

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Our CorrespondentMuscat

Emerging projects between

Japan and Oman will focus on re-

newable energy, the Japanese

ambassador, H E Seiji Morimoto,

announced at the University of

Nizwa on Monday.

During the speech, made in

celebration of Japan's national

day, H E Morimoto explained

that emerging projects with

Oman will focus more on renew-

able energy and the environ-

ment. In particular, the amount

of strong sunlight Oman receives

should allow for a large scale in-

tegration of solar power, enough

to provide a viable alternative

source of energy for the country.

“Oman will eventually face chal-

lenges with its limited energy

resources. For the long-term

economic development of

Oman, it is crucial to develop al-

ternative and new energy re-

New projects with Oman to focus onrenewable energy: Japanese envoy

sources, as well as energy saving

technologies. Such development

increases energy efficiency and

thus preserves precious re-

sources. It also leads to the es-

tablishment of

new industrial

foundations in

Oman,” he said.

Oman exports

ten per cent of its

oil to Japan and

trade between

the countries

reached approxi-

mately US$10bn,

according to

2008 figures.

There are cur-

rently around

130 Japanese nationals living and

11 Japanese companies in the

sultanate. Current developments

are helping to cement economic

relationships and providing the

building blocks for future coop-

eration, according to Morimoto.

“The presence of Japanese com-

panies has contributed to the na-

tion building of Oman. Recognis-

ing the potential of oil and gas

sectors in Oman, Japanese com-

panies made a special contribu-

tion to the

development of

the gas sector by

c o n s t r u c t i n g

LNG processing

plants in Sur.”

The ambassa-

dor also said that

the efficiency

with which

Oman uses its

fossil fuels is a

key factor in in-

creasing the size

of its industrial

base and ensuring employment

opportunities for Omani nation-

als, thereby diversifying the areas

in which revenue can be raised.

The ambassador went on to con-

gratulate Nizwa on achieving the

honour of becoming the Capital

of Islamic Culture in 2015.

{{

“It is crucial

for Oman to

develop

alternative and

new energy

resources”

Alex AdamsMuscat

Businesswomen from Pakistan’s

beleaguered North West Fron-

tier Province (NWFP) are urging

Omanis to invest in their busi-

nesses and help those whose

lives have been devastated by

earthquakes and conflict.

The stricken region came into

the public eye after an earth-

quake measuring 7.8 on the

Richter Scale hit the province on

October 8, 2005, leaving

80,000 people dead and 3.5mn

homeless. Recent infighting be-

tween militants has also seen

the region plunge further into

crisis.

Following the earthquake,

many women in the region have

struggled after losing their

homes, husbands and families,

but businesses such as Annum

Collections have been lending a

helping hand by helping them

earn a living by selling their

goods.

However, the women who

were widowed in the earthquake

need more money to send their

children to school as well as

clothe and feed their families.

Now they form a part of a

Pakistani businesswomen’s del-

egation exhibiting their products

at this year’s Women Expo, cur-

rently being held at the Oman

International Exhibition Centre.

Tehmina Faheem, a designer

with Annum Collections in

NWFP, explained that many of

the women are seeking invest-

ment in their businesses as their

living costs have risen.

“The people who make these

clothes were greatly affected by

the earthquake. Many of the

women lost their homes and

their families. It is very impor-

tant for us to be here to make

people aware of their plight. We

need big orders to get them

the help they need for a more

stable life.”

Adil Qayyum, vice chairman,

Federation of Pakistan Cham-

bers of Commerce and Indus-

try’s standing committee on

small and medium enterprises,

explained that the exhibitors’

presence at the Women Expo

was an important step forward

in changing people’s negative

perception of the region.

“This is giving them the aid

and help they need, and they are

looking forward to doing busi-

ness in Oman as well as doing

something to promote bilateral

economic activity and portray a

positive image of the region.”

The NWFP businesswomen

are part of a much larger dele-

gation put together with the

help of the Trade Development

Authority of Pakistan.

Ghazala Saifi, the manager of

Khaamta, a small Karachi-based

fashion house, said that this

delegation is also in Oman to

prove that Pakistani business-

women are serious about suc-

cess in the GCC countries.

She added, “We are opti-

mistic and we feel that coming

here would definitely be helpful

for us. We are looking for

investors who can stock our

products in Oman.”

Saifi also said that traditional

crafts from the NWFP could die

out if they don’t receive funding.

“These women produce goods

that are known across the

world. But it is almost a dying

art and it will fade out if they

don’t make enough money.

Skills are dependent on people

being paid well.”

Specialists in the field of phys-

iotherapy and rehabilitation will

be attending a conference in

Muscat to further develop

these services in the country.

The Department of Physio-

therapy and Rehabilitation at

Khoula Hospital will hold an

international symposium along

with a series of workshops on

October 28 and 29 at the

Crowne Plaza Hotel, which will

include presentations from

professionals ranging from

podiatrists, orthopaedics and

dieticians to prosthetics and or-

thotics specialists,

practising both in and outside

Oman.

Khoula Hospital is planning

to build on established relation-

ships with some institutions

within, and across, Oman’s bor-

ders with the aim of improving

the sustainability of physiother-

apy and rehabilitation services.

There will be a scientific meet-

ing on the first day, where ex-

perienced speakers and schol-

ars from institutions in Aus-

tralia, UK, Turkey and India, in

addition to local speakers, will

present and share their experi-

ences in physiotherapy and re-

habilitation.

There will be a series of

workshops on various topics by

the lecturers and, it is hoped

through these, local profession-

als in the field will have a

chance to observe the latest

techniques. The delegates will

also visit and view the rehabili-

tation services offered in

Oman.

The event is a follow up to

the Ministry of Health’s goal of

supporting and encouraging

development in health staff

training.

Women traders seek investmentPakistani women affected by 2005 quake hope to find stockists in Oman

Physiotherapy meet to provide learning opportunity

The amount of strong sunlight Oman receives should allow for a large scale integration of solar power